The Rock Between Their Stars
by StrengthofTimed
Summary: Set in the live action PGSM universe it picks up two years after PGSM ends. Pop Star Minako and Usagi are very close, Rei is training in Hokkaido. The story will move back and forward throughout these events. Long Fic. Rei/Minako and mentions of Usagi/Minako. Currently rated T but this will most likely change to M in the future.
1. First Contact

~2 Years post Usagi and Mamoru's wedding~

Rei scowled as she walked past the giant billboard outside the secluded Kushiro shrine. She tried to calm herself by slowing her breathing, keeping her head and eyes down intent on preventing an onslaught of thoughts and memories before suddenly coming to a complete stop. Sighing to herself she turned and walked back until she was standing in front of the large advertisement. She looked up, breathing in sharply.

"A lonely life needs a touch of Love." The large pink letters were to the left of the huge image of pink kimono-clad pop star Aino Minako looking straight ahead. In her left hand she was holding a bottle of water which read "Strawberry touch" and at the bottom of the advertisement were the other flavoured waters: Lemon touch, Orange touch, Berry red bean touch and Veggie touch. On her face she wore a huge, delighted grin, one eye winking as though sharing a private, cheeky joke and one hand outstretched invitingly.

Rei looked up into Minako's animated face and rolled her eyes causing her to exhale a breath she hadn't realised she'd been holding. Rei didn't mask the hurt as she looked up again into poster Minako's eyes, memories washing over her, her eyes closed as she felt goosebumps begin to run up her arms, _Minako pushed her back against the wall, her expression determined and her arm across Rei's chest preventing her from moving away_, Rei closed her eyes tighter forcing the memory back, her hand instinctively moving to her pocket, reaching for the strip of paper that could protect her…

A loud crow's squawk brought her back to reality. She looked over her shoulder, and careful not to look back at the billboard, started walking back the way she was originally headed. "Protection?" she laughed unsurely. "Protection from what?"

_Ghosts_, came the quiet reply inside of her. Rei shook her head silencing her internal voice and sighing to herself once again. She breathed out and tried to get her tense muscles to relax, but she could feel the barrage of memories pounding to be let out. "No," she told them firmly and walked determinedly up towards the shrine. That advert had been there three days and every day walking past it left her with a pounding headache.

Rei pulled out her phone and looked at the last group chat entry between the senshi. Another photo of Usagi and Minako. As the feeling of how much she missed them all overwhelmed her she settled down in front of the flames.


	2. So Far Away From Home

*This chapter has been revised.

* * *

The past two years deep and lonely in rural Hokkaido had not been easy and she had to laugh bitterly to herself as she stared up at Minako. "Rei," she could almost hear her name on Minako's lips. She could hear the silence underneath the word, the unspoken depths, the heaviness. "What are you doing here?" she demanded of billboard Minako, her chest unexpectedly clenching painfully. Her bitter laugh caught in her throat as she swollowed hard. Of course not even this tiny village at the ends of the earth could keep out the force that was superstar Aino Minako. If a simple billboard of Minako could have her conversing with thin air she had a long, long way to go before her studies with Okano Sensei were anywhere near complete.

_Look at me. I'm not ready_, she thought to herself and the ache in her chest surged at the thought of being here too much longer. She stared up at Minako again reminded of the events at Makoto's wedding six months earlier returned…

"Rei's over here with Minako! Just like always," Usagi laughed tipsily. "Isn't that right, Mako? Mako! Maaaako," Usagi called turning around, still laughing. Minako had turned to look at her then with raised eyebrows and a playful smile. It had been the most Minako had 'said' to her all night.

Minako had spent the entire evening being… Minako. Rei had never gotten used to sharing her, much less how social she was. She'd always felt like she was in constant catch up mode with Minako, desperate to have a shred of the real her and that feeling had only intensified since they were reborn free of their senshi duties. She loved how fun, free and funny Minako had turned out to be, but neither of them had been able to face what happened and eventually between pretending nothing had happened and Minako putting oceans between them when she moved to the UK to finish high school and record her album, the decision had been made for them.

_"You wouldn't come?"_

Rei shook her head to dislodge the unwanted memory as her thoughts returned to the wedding once again. With all the girls at the one table, and Mamoru and Motoki, Usagi's friends having informally pulled up chairs, plus a decent sized Minako -curious crowd constantly hanging around, it had been a loud, fun table. _Too fun_, Rei had thought in annoyance. During the conversations Minako had turned silently to her a couple of times throughout the night their eyes meeting, a few moments between them that had Rei's heart unfairly beating faster. Rei couldn't quite remember if they'd said a single word to each other that entire night, she thought not, she was just relieved that she'd managed to keep her emotions and comments in check. _That she hadn't made things worse between them. _Maybe the past two years under Okano Sensei had not been as much of a failure as she felt them to be.

Suddenly Rei recalled what it was about that evening that had been the reason she'd pushed it towards the back of her memory. The painful image of Usagi and Minako interacting flooded back into her senses: Usagi and Minako laughing until they were crying. The pair of them talking up a storm, their attention barely diverted from the other the entire evening, their body language and facial expressions playing off of the other… Minako constantly leaning forward and touching Usagi's arm with every look and tipsy laugh, Usagi replying in kind…

Usagi and Minako had become close, Rei had heard plenty about that, and she'd _seen_ all the photos, but seeing them together somehow made her throat tighten painfully. _They're practically mimicking the mating dance of the cranes_, Rei had thought crossly to herself, frowning down at her food. She reached over for her water, sipping it slowly and sighing inwardly to herself. _This is Makoto's wedding_, she reminded herself. So much for feeling pleased with her progress, her heart sank a little at that. What was going on with her? Usagi and Minako were just being… Usagi and Minako. _And_, she reminded herself, Usagi was the most touchy-feely person she knew and Minako was… _Was what?_ she asked herself, her forehead creasing.

_Still obsessed with her princess_, came the small voice unbidden again. She cleared her throat to distract herself and looked down at her plate trying to turn her focus back to her meal and the conversation going on around her. Looking across from her she noticed Ami with an expression as pained as hers staring down at her own plate and Makoto on the other side of her watching Rei carefully. It wasn't the first time that night that she'd felt Makoto's eyes on her. When Rei's eye met Makoto's, Makoto gave her a warm smile before turning to reply back to whatever absurd story Minako and Usagi where sharing with the table.

When it had been time to leave Minako had managed to give Rei a tiny apologetic smile amongst all the commotion and congratulating Makoto, then she had disappeared and was gone again.

Later that night they all sat around the fire as the last of the guests had gone home. "When will you go back to the US, Ami?" Rei had asked.

"I'm staying a couple of weeks with Mako and Motoki until her college holidays end," Ami replied smiling gently at Rei. "We'd love if you stayed too."

Rei shifted uncomfortably. "I'd love to, but I've got to-"

"Get back to your prison," Makoto smirked cutting her off. "Yeah, we know. You know, if you want to be as far away as possible _and_ need a prison I've heard Australia is nice. Plus, it's pretty much as far away as you can get from England, so, you know, problem solved," Makoto teased with a challenging glint in her eye.

Rei grabbed her handbag and stood up turning to face Makoto having taken the bait. She was in just the right mood for a fight. "You know Makoto, I don't remember asking for your unwanted opinion on anything that has nothing to do with you," Rei stared at her icily.

Makoto stood up just as Ami jumped out of her chair rushing over to Rei looking panicked and teary. "Wait! you guys please. I can't believe you're almost fighting on Makoto's wedding," Ami looked pleadingly at Rei.

Makoto smiled easily and sat back down. "Don't worry Ami, it's nothing. Right, Rei?"

Rei smiled apologetically at Ami and sat back down in her chair, putting her handbag down behind her, and looked down at her hands in her lap _fuck this whole night,_ she thought to herself. "Sorry Makoto" she said looked over at Makoto before looking away quickly as her eyes closed trying to prevent any tears. Makoto reached over and squeezed her hand. "I'm sorry too, Rei," Makoto said and squeezed her hand again.

"Wine anyone?" Motoki called with a laugh walking towards them with Mamoru carrying wine glasses in tow.

Rei was back looking up at Minako on the giant billboard in front of her as her thoughts cleared away and she became aware of shrine master Okano Sensei watching her from the stairs. She wondered how long he'd been there, but saying nothing she turned and quickly walked off heading into town.


	3. I'm Still Alone

This is the final chapter without Rei and Minako.

*this chapter has been revised.

* * *

~6 months post Makoto's wedding~ ~2 years post Usagi's wedding~

"Rei, this is getting ridiculous! No one can contact you! Even Minako and Ami spend more time with us and they don't even live in Japan! Just sort things out with..."

"Bye, Makoto," she had said calmly before hanging up and switching off her phone.

Two days later Okano Sensei had come to her room at 4.30am to tell her that a Ms. Mizuno was on the main shrine phone line in the study.

"Rei," Ami's voice was quiet. "You know she's just worried about you. She doesn't understand how hard things are…" Ami stopped herself before adding "It must be tough on Mako, she's been married six months and her three best friends are so far away."

Rei nodded at that, but remained silent waiting for Ami to continue. "I'm going to be back for New Year's," Ami told her, "and I'm staying with Mako again. I can't wait to see you. We all miss you so much, especially…" Rei heard someone saying something to Ami in the background. "Ok, Rei, I've got to go. I'm sorry to wake you so early, but I figured you'd be up soon... Just please… call Mako."

Rei hung up and sat a while longer in the quiet study. _New Years?_ Rei felt her heart skip a beat at the thought of seeing Usagi, Makoto and Ami again. She tried not to think about whether Minako would or wouldn't be there and which of those would ache the most.

* * *

Rei headed into Kushiro village centre, keeping her head down as she passed the huge poster that had appeared two weeks earlier.

As Rei stood at the unattended counter of the small supermarket her breath caught in her throat as her eyes wondered over to the 'Playing Now' CD stand.

"It's Minako's new Endless Eclipse album! It just arrived yesterday," Manato informed her as he put down the boxes he was carrying over to the counter. "Here," he grabbed a remote "let me play it for you," the first song started up as he handed her a copy of the album with a smile. "There's lots of French, English lyrics and also maybe, um, I think it's Greek too. Minako's really talented isn't she?"

Rei wasn't listening, her breath stopped as she turned the CD over in her hands, her throat going dry as she stared dumbstruck at the cover: two naked blond Minakos curled up in each other's arms and lying on the the inside of a large crescent moon which itself formed the tilted "C" in Minako's name which had been romanised as Minaco.

_Minako... This is too far even for you. What are you doing? _Rei's thoughts were interrupted by the sound of Minako's vocals joining the energetic music that had started playing.

_Every life eclipsed by your moon, Aphrodite waiting inside me, waxing and waning in and out of this day, Lovers of the moon, Of the mooon, Of the mooOOOoon_.

"Great, isn't it?" Manato smiled at her seeing Rei's shocked expression and mistaking it for being impressed. Rei internally rolled her eyes at the ridiculousness of the lyrics. She was _so_ damned sick of Minako's endless stream of love songs to Usagi and their past. Why couldn't Minako just leave the past where it belonged?

_Why can't_ _you_? came a reply inside of her.

As Rei was listening to the song through gritted teeth, her hands balled into tight, white fists, a picture of Minako on the magazine stand caught her eye. "Minako's latest international celebrity hook up exposed!"

"Ms Hino?"

Rei didn't hear Manato call after her as she ran out of the store without her groceries and headed straight back to the meditation room not moving again until early into the next morning.


End file.
